Police officer suspended in alleged funds theft case

Published 6:00 pm, Monday, March 10, 2003

Rosenberg Police Chief Robert Gracia says Martin Mendoza, a man arrested for a Feb. 10 accident, claims police took thousands of dollars from him after he was taken into custody.

"We are having a very hard time getting accurate information from the victim (Mendoza). So far, he can't seem to tell us how much was allegedly taken. He has said as little as $2,000 and then in news reports he has claimed as much as $15,000 was missing," Gracia says.

Mendoza, a Mexican national, told reporters that officers stole several thousand dollars from him when they took him into custody after a minor traffic accident.

Mendoza, 31, told reporters he was driving from Louisiana to Mexico last month when he was arrested in Rosenberg. He says he was going to Mexico to take the money to his family.

Gracia says Mendoza told officers he was a passenger in the car, and the driver had fled after the accident. However, witnesses at the scene said Mendoza was the driver. Mendoza also failed to present insurance and a driver's license and therefore, was arrested, Gracia says. He later managed to produce two driver's licenses from two different states and a certificate of proof of insurance. Gracia says he wonders about the proof of insurance because the auto is not licensed in Texas.

Regardless of the circumstances surrounding the arrest, Gracia says when Mendoza was released from jail on the following day he came back to the department to get his personal property, which included a large sum of cash. Gracia says $23,000 in cash was submitted by arresting officers and $23,000 in cash was returned to Mendoza along with his other personal items. Mendoza immediately claimed money was missing, Gracia says. And an immediate investigation was launched based on Mendoza's claim.

Gracia says as the city's highest law enforcement officer he has the responsibility to make sure that officers are protected from fabricated complaints by those they deal with, and he is also responsible to make sure the rights of citizens are upheld.

"We have the responsibility to protect citizens from police mistreatment or abuse, and we have responsibility to insure that our officers are protected as well. Of course, I am very disappointed the investigation has indicated there is something amiss. Police officers sometimes cross that line and while it is disappointing, if this is the case it will be dealt with in the appropriate way," Gracia says.

Gracia says investigators may take the case to the Fort Bend County District Attorney on Monday. He says investigators are hoping to get accurate information on the exact amount of money that Mendoza has determined is missing.

Mendoza's attorney, Randall Kallinen, affiliated with the ACLU is said to have called the FBI and Texas Rangers to investigate the situation.

Gracia says "some money" was recovered during the investigation but, because the investigation is ongoing neither the name of the officer, who has not yet been charged with a criminal offense, nor the amount of funds, can yet be released.

"We plan to issue a press release with all of these details when the investigation has been completed," says Gracia.